Milverton swimmer Beth French gearing up for greatest challenge yet

Milverton swimmer Beth French gearing up for greatest challenge yet

A MUM hoping to become the first person to complete a daring open water swim has been given a little lift in training... thanks to her son.

Beth French, 36, has already swum the English Channel and the Molokai channel between two Hawaiian islands.

Now Beth, who was once a wheelchair user from the debilitating illness ME, is preparing to swim one of the world’s most dangerous challenges – the 26 miles of open ocean from Land’s End to the Isles of Scilly.

To help her along her way, Beth, of Milverton, has been towing along five-year-old son Dylan in a dinghy to increase her stamina.

She said: “Becoming a mother spurred me on to return to swimming as I feel it’s important to show your kids dreams can be real and fulfilling your potential is a vital part of life.

“The longer I swim the more comfortable I feel.”

As reported in the County Gazette, Beth became the first British woman to swim the Molokai Channel in just over 24 hours.

It means she has completed two parts of the Ocean Seven challenge – seven open water swims across the globe which only five people have completed.

In preparation for her latest challenge in July, Beth, a regular contributor to the County Gazette’s Health section, has been training in open seas in temperatures little over freezing.

She said: “Mental attitude plays a huge part. I swam through the winter without a wet suit and it went down to about five or six degrees in the water.

“You have to go in with the attitude that it’s going to be fun and interesting, otherwise you’d never do it.”

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